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    3.3 Development of a Food Security Cluster Coordination Structure at Country Level
    • 15 Dec 2023
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    3.3 Development of a Food Security Cluster Coordination Structure at Country Level

    • Updated on 15 Dec 2023
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    Article summary

    There is no single model for an FSC at country level since crises vary in scale and complexity. The cluster structure should be context specific, flexible and inclusive and will vary according to a number of factors such as: the type of emergency (e.g. sudden onset, protracted crisis), whether the cluster will integrate with existing coordination arrangements, available resources, the security and humanitarian access context, national systems, actors and capacities.  

    The actual FSC structure will be jointly agreed by the CLAs upon cluster activation, based on the CLAs’ initial overview and analysis of the context and of existing food security sector coordination arrangements (see 3.2.2 above).

    Key considerations to assist the development of an FSC structure include:

    • How is the setup organised; who agrees to act as the CLA, both agencies or only one agency?
    • How does the cluster engage with national authorities and line ministries? How does the cluster interact with existing coordination structures and disaster management bodies? 
      • The FSC technically reports to both FAO and WFP as CLAs and engages with its line ministries. As food security encompasses many ministries, it may include ministries such as Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Social Affairs, Disaster Management etc. (see 3.3.1)
    • How does the cluster relate with OCHAand key clusters, like Nutrition? 
      • The FSC works with OCHA, other clusters and has a specific relationship with the Nutrition Cluster (see chapter 4).
    • What is the composition of the FSC coordination team, and what is the functional and geographical structure of the cluster (will there be a subnational FSC)? 
      • In most of the cases, the coordination team consists of 1 cluster coordinator and 1 information management officer (IMO). 
      • The FSC usually operates at national level though FSC sub-national coordination structures are common (see 3.5.2 and 10.4.1) 
    • Is there a possibility of the government co-leading or national NGO co-facilitating the FSC? 
      • The FSC is sometimes co-facilitated by an NGO while the co-leadership from the government is more seldom (see 3.6.1).
    • What may be the strategy to transition into longer-term coordination structures and what would be the planned capacity strengthening efforts? (see 3.7 and 3.8).
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